By Noah Dalton
MITCHELL — It was Senior Night for Mitchell High School, who welcomed Paoli to Terry Cole Field for the final game to be hosted there this season.
The Bluejackets looked to turn around what has thus far been a difficult season for them, entering the matchup 0-7 for the year, amidst a 12-game losing skid going back to last season.
The Rams spoiled those hopes, taking the win in dominant fashion, 57-6.
Paoli started the game hot, scoring 43 unanswered points in the first half, triggering the running-clock mercy rule for the entire second half and all-but cementing the victory by that point.
Mitchell head coach Zach See said the Rams took advantage of what he felt has a low-effort performance after the team dealt with difficultly early, reminiscent of what he said he felt was the case in the previous week, where the team lost 52-6 at North Daviess.
“I felt like we had some good effort there on the first couple drives and then kind of felt like we went back to last week and just kind of laid down,” said See.
“I’m pretty disappointed in the last two weeks, the effort that we’ve had in the first half, and they know that, and they know that they can play better and play with better effort than what we did tonight.”
During the first half, the Rams rushing attack controlled the game, racking up 304 yards and five touchdowns on just 16 carries. They were led by Dane Padgett, who had 144 of those yards and two scores with only four attempts.
The second half saw a better performance from Mitchell, significantly slowing the pace set previously by Paoli and eventually finding the end zone via a 23-yard completion from Joe Todd to senior Levi Petro.
Petro, one of just three seniors on the young Bluejackets’ roster, also grabbed an interception in his final home game for the school.
The other seniors on the roster are Cody Howard and Tyson Quinn.
“it’s been an absolute joy to coach those guys,” See, in his second season at the helm, said of the senior group.
“It’s a huge thank you to them and everything they’ve done for the program and the foundation that we’re trying to lay for this program. And, when we get there, because we’re going to get there, I’ll be able to look back and say Cody Howard, Levi Petro, Tyson Quinn; those guys laid the groundwork for what we are now.”
Mitchell will close the regular season on the road with a Patoka Lake Athletic Conference matchup against Perry Central, who are also 0-8 heading into the matchup.
For both teams, the night will serve as their final opportunity to pick up a win in this regular season, as they look to gain momentum with sectional play starting the following week.
“Emotions will be high next week. They want to win their first game too, just like we do, and it’s going to be a battle. “We’ve got to come out ready to match their intensity and effort,” said See.
“No matter how down they are, that’s one thing [Perry Central] is going to give is intensity, they’re going to give effort, and they’re going to fight play after play, and we’ve got to match it. Just like tonight, we needed to match it, and we didn’t do a very good job of matching it.”
